As world leaders gathered for the 78th World Health Assembly (WHA) in Geneva early this week, the new Strike Out Snakebite (SOS) initiative unveiled a confronting art installation to highlight the critical need for action against the daily threat of snakebite envenoming, which disproportionately and severely affects some of the world’s most vulnerable communities.
Snakebite is one of the world’s deadliest yet most overlooked Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs), with one person dying every five minutes and many more suffering severe injuries and amputations that profoundly impact their lives and livelihoods. However, with increased visibility, political momentum and a clear investment pipeline, this preventable global health issue can be tackled to eliminate needless suffering.
The public art series in Geneva’s Parc Mon Repos aims to bring the urgency of the snakebite crisis to the international community’s attention. Through 10 individual artworks, including a 3-metre snake sculpture and series of warning signs and illustrations, the work brings to life the physical threat, the significant human impact, and the hope inspired by scientific research and development.
The Strike Out Snakebite (SOS) initiative, aimed at ending preventable deaths and disabilities from snakebite, has also established a Global Snakebite Taskforce comprised of experts, policymakers, funders, researchers, health professionals, community advocates, and global leaders.
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Co-chaired by the Hon Aden Duale, Cabinet Secretary to the Kenyan Ministry of Health, and Elhadj As Sy, Chancellor of Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, the Taskforce’s mission is to elevate the visibility of this pressing issue on the global stage and catalyse resources for treatment and interventions that will prevent snakebite-related deaths and disabilities.
The Taskforce has released a new report, Time to Bite Back: Catalyzing a Global Response to Snakebite Envenoming. The report tracks progress towards the World Health Organization’s (WHO) target of halving deaths and disabilities from snakebite envenoming by 2030, and calls on the global community, including policymakers, global leaders, public health authorities, communities, and funders, to accelerate action.
The report highlights that significant advancements can be made if the global community invests in safe and effective treatments, ensures antivenoms are accessible to all, phases out substandard and false antivenom products from the market, equips healthcare systems and professionals with the necessary tools and knowledge, and supports community prevention and education initiatives.
With snakebite envenoming on the WHA agenda for the first time since 2020, the Taskforce is bringing it back in 2025 and will outline the pathway to achieving these advancements over the next year.
Mr Aden Duale, Kenyan Minister for Health and Co-Chair of the Global Snakebite Taskforce, said snakebite envenoming is a critical issue for Kenya, disproportionately affecting rural communities and children. “After years of snakebite being in the shadows, securing snakebite onto the official WHA agenda for the first time this decade is a significant moment and testament to Kenya’s commitment to addressing this overlooked, but eliminable, health challenge,” Mr Duale said.
“By prioritizing snakebite on the global agenda, he said, Kenya is not only advocating the health, safety and livelihoods of citizens, but setting a precedent for other nations. “This is the start of a new chapter of international collaboration to ensure no more lives are lost to this preventable health challenge,” he added.
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Elhadj As Sy, Chancellor of the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine and Co-Chair of the Global Snakebite Taskforce, said: “While the risk of snakebite may feel remote for many global leaders, the devastating and preventable human toll of snakebite envenoming can no longer be ignored by the international community. Our message is clear, nobody should be dying from a snakebite in 2025.
Dr Patrick Amoth, EGH, Director General for Health, Kenya, said: “Every five minutes, 50 people around the world are bitten by a snake, four will be permanently disabled, and one will die. Across the African continent alone, 435,000 – 580,000 people are envenomed annually, causing disability, life changing injury and death. With the issue of snakebite now officially back on the WHA agenda, we have a critical opportunity to come together to galvanise global action.”
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